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Witching Metal Webzine

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Bludvera interview.

Bludvera are a five piece band from the UK who play an old-school style of straightforward, no bullshit Thrash Metal in the style of early Slayer and early Kreator. I had a nice lengthy talk with their frontman, Scott.

Wayde:Mornin' Scott, how are you fairing on this fine day? Lets get things started with a brief summary of Bludvera's history, for those who don't know anything about you guys yet, if you don't mind?

Scott:Bludvera are a five piece Thrash Metal band from Liverpool, UK. We played Thrash Metal similar to bands on the German scene like Kreator and Destruction but also take influences from all Thrash Metal styles. We have a bit of everything in us which is great.

Wayde:Who's in the band? And what would you say are your main influences? I personally hear a lot of Pleasure to Kill and early Destruction in your sound!

Scott:Right there's Me (Scott) on Vocals, "Patto" and Mike on guitar who both share rhythm and lead duties. They are a major trait in our band as both members are talented as well as being shred guitarists. So it opens us up to pretty much everything and there's no limitations to what we can play really. Lui on Bass and Baz who has just joined us on drumming duties. We have only had two lineup changes and so far (Rhythm Guitarist and a Drummer) they have probably been for the best.

As for what our main influences are they'd have to be; Big Four, Testament, Exodus, Kreator, Sodom, Destruction, Exumer, Artillery and Toxik. Pretty much a wide range but once again we play a combined sound of Bay Area and Teutonic Thrash mainly focusing on the German side of things at the moment but we have fun playing everything.

Wayde:That's a very interesting mix of influences, it definitely shows in your sound. What releases do you have out so far? Are there any upcoming releases?

Scott:We have one demo which is self titled and was not released on a physical format. It's free to download online (myspace/facebook/website) and it's also cool if you send it to your friends too. At the moment we're working on our second release which is definitely a step up in our sound as well as a progression as musicians. Which you'll probably be able to see in the music. I hope everyone enjoys it and we should be in the studio as soon as possible.

Wayde:Why did you decide to only release the first demo as an online download? Will the next release have a hard copy?

Scott:Basically the first demo was originally going to be distributed online and there was going to be a pressed version which had a cover of Metallica's Seek & Destroy (which you can listen to now on youtube) but pressing it costed money and when we got around to paying for it they slapped on a load of tax and shipping prices which wasn't in the original offer. So we just released it online. Now we've found/been offered a few distribution deals and when the EP is finally finished then we can make a decision on who has the best offer for it. So yes, it will be distributed on a physical format as well as some (hopefully) awesome artwork.

Wayde:Excellent! I look forward to snapping up a copy.Do you see releasing the first demo online as more of a positive thing for the band, as in, was it easier to get your name out there etc. by offering it online for free?

Scott:Giving it away for free is pretty awesome. We've had people from all over the world get in touch with us and talk to us about how much they enjoyed the first demo. I guess it lets people sample you before they get the real deal. I kind of got inspired from Heavy Metal band Hospital of Death. We played a gig with them a long time a go and also hung out at a festival two years ago and they gave all their music away for free online and people still wanted to buy physical copies.

So my original idea for the demo was to give it away for free and also have physical copies. I don't know what will happen with the next release as someone will be distributing it and wanting to make something out of it but it will end up online eventually anyway...

Wayde:I think releasing it online was/is a fantastic idea! Especially because every release eventually ends up available for free on the internet regardess.Have/are you, or any other members of the band been involved with any other projects, metal or otherwise?

Scott:Nope not really. We like to keep everyone focused on the band but however sometimes me and Patto mess around with ideas and make music of other genre's when we're bored but recently we've given birth to Doofus which is a Crossover band but we're not actually sure if it's going to be real yet. We've written some stuff and have loads of idea for gimmicks, covers and comical lyrics but I seriously don't know if we're going to do it and if we do, do it. It will be a joke, we'll be having fun and if it totally sucks it wouldn't matter anyway because at the end of the day we'd be doing it to get a laugh out of it. But yeah, no other serious side-projects.

Wayde:So where abouts in the UK are you blokes from? What is the metal scene like there, are there any particular bands we should keep an ear out for?

Scott:We're from Liverpool just like Carcass and The Beatles and a tone of other cool bands. The Metal scene in Liverpool I guess is pretty weak on the local side but is building up somewhat steadily the best place for Thrash in the North at the moment is Yorkshire. We play there frequently as it's only a 2 hour drive. We've been getting a lot of cool gigs in Liverpool lately (Death/Black/Grind) but at the moment the Thrash scene here is none existant. It consists of SSS (some might not consider them Thrash), us and perhaps another band.

As for keeping a look out for bands I'd have to say... Shrapnel (Norwich), Blood Sweat & Beer, Desolator (upcoming). All UK bands.

Wayde:Sounds cool, I'll definitely keep my ear out for their names!Have you got any memorable and/or funny stories and experiences from your career so far that you would like to share?

Scott:A good story was when we were driving to a show in our van before we got the bus and we stole a park bench to put in the back so that we had somewhere to sit. The van turned really quickly and the bench jerked to the side and completely snapped. Another, we were driving back from playing a gig. Driving home on the motorway going really fast and our old drummer had his back against the double doors on the back of the van and they mustn't of been locked or something and the doors opened and he nearly fell out, we were all screaming and we grabbed him quickly and closed the doors. Pretty fucked up. That happened again a few months later, except this time a guitar head flew out the back of the van and broke. That sucked and that is why we padlocked the back doors closed but our new bus rules.

Wayde:Whoa, that's some pretty intense yet funny stuff!I understand that Bludvera has recently been opening up for some "bigger" bands, including but not limited to, Evile. Who else have you opened up for? What has the experience been like?

Scott:This year we've had some pretty awesome experiences. Supported Evile thanks to Metal Hammer magazine and everybody who voted for us which made it a reality. Recently we've supported Bonded by Blood and Lazarus AD which again was just amazing and in a few months we've got Gama Bomb coming up. Last year we only got to support SSS, so this year's a progress already. I see new school bands in USA supporting way bigger names but those opportunities are very limited in the UK. As a pro though, our country is smaller meaning touring is a lot easier and playing more shows is easier too. That's pretty much what the scene's like. Being able to gig more but lacking the bigger opportunities.

Wayde:So what is next for Bludvera? It seems that the world is at your feet right now, will there be any tours or festivals? What about merchandise and future plans for releases aside from the upcoming second demo?

Scott:Next is we keep writing and try and move things a lot quicker. We seem to be the slowest band on this planet but yeah, we'll continue playing gigs around the UK. Once the next release is out we will obviously have some more T-Shirts printed and perhaps some more idea's for merchandise. Really thinking about giving away patches with the CD. Vinyl and Cassette are formats I've always liked so perhaps I will try and release our releases onto different formats for collectors. I'm just being crazy now.

We're in a competition similar to a battle of the bands. We don't normally do that kind of stuff but this one gives us a shot at Bloodstock Open Air Festival. Playing the same festival as Exodus, Kreator and Coroner would really be a dream but when there's dreams there's also reality. If we win our heat next Tuesday we go through to one of two semi-finals but if we don't then it's just better luck next year. We come back twice as strong and try and win it or finish higher than we did this year.

We'll keep writing music, keep enjoying what we do and playing as many shows in as many places as we possibly can.

As for future releases after the next release, who knows?

Wayde:Looks like you're gonna be busy!I would like to thank you for taking the time to do this interview, it's been a long time coming to get some Bluvera coverage on this site!Any final words for myself or the readers?

Scott:Keep listening to us and supporting us. Hopefully we'll play somewhere near you soon!